Yellow-cheeked Tit
Yellow-cheeked Tit Machlolophus spilonotus was seen infrequently on this tour with only five records in total. This adult female was photographed in a very productive garden with low bushes and trees. Other birds photographed in the same tree were Black-throated Sunbird, Little Pied Flycatcher and Fire-breasted Flowerpecker.
It is found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Hong Kong, India, Laos, Burma, Nepal, Thailand, and Vietnam. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.
Yellow-cheeked Tit was formerly one of the many species in the genus Parus but was moved to Machlolophus after a molecular phylogenetic analysis published in 2013 showed that the members of the new genus formed a distinct clade. There are four subspecies and this photo is of the subspecies M. s. subviridis which is found in northern Thailand.
Country: Thailand
Location: Doi Inthanon National Park
Family: Tits, Chickadees (Paridae)
Species: Yellow-cheeked Tit (Parus spilonotus)
Date taken: 12/12/2016
